So why are you an athiest?

[Allie]

I have always wondered at people's stories, and I would like to hear yours. What would make a person so angry, sorrowful, or unconvinced as to not believe in God?

I come to you in the most humble of circumstances, I am still very young. I probably have less knowledge of the Bible than most people on this site do, but I would still like to contribute to these interesting conversations; Won't you please tell me your story?

[OnceConvinced]

HI Chocs and welcome! Hope you hang around and post some more.

I didn't really have any problem with what you were saying up until this point:

I believe everyone knows that God exists and who the real God is but some chose to not acknowledge this.

There would seem to be no good reason for someone to choose not to acknowledge a truth if they knew it to be true. From my experience, the people here on this site have not chosen to ignore God, it is more about a conclusion. They can see no evidence of God.

I was a Christian for over 30 years (virtually all my life) and believed in God with all my heart. Had no real doubts until a few years ago. Then I started to realise that what I believed to be God was not likely God at all. I am now an agnostic. This is not something I wanted to be or chose to be. It is something I came to the inescapable conclusion about. I wish I could believe again, but I just can't. It's just not possible. Just like I can't go back to believing in Santa Claus again.

Proof is all around the world if a person truly seeks God in his or her life.

Zzyzx has already touched on this, but I'll comment too. For some personalities, yes, this may be plausable but for others born more sceptical it's not. As a Christian I certainly looked around and saw God in everything, no doubts about that, but as I became more knowledgeable I learnt that a lot of what I saw as God, had perfectly natural explanations.

He doesn't like showing himself to large groups of people

Well this would seem to be an obvious observation. Also a problem for anyone trying to claim god to be real. If God did reveal himself to large groups of people at any one time, it would be far more convincing than appearing to individuals in private.

Another very plausable reason why he does not appear to large groups (and is more likely to visit individuals while lying in their bed at nights) is because he is simply not real or just doesn't care about us. Maybe? Just maybe?

because he doesn't want to force you to like him. He wants you to find him yourself. Then he will be your friend.

Revealing yourself to someone is not forcing someone to like you. If you see a girl you like and you go up and introduce yourself, is that forcing yourself upon her? She still has the option to reject you right? You saying "Hi" does not necessarily have her falling in love with you at first sight.

Same for God. God revealing himself and proving his existance is not forcing himself on mankind. Mankind can still choose to reject him if they wish. At least by revealing himself, it will deal with all those sceptical people who don't believe he exists.

[faith]

1) Because the Christians in the area self-identify as the St. Thomas Christians, and maintain a detailed account of what the apostle did there.
2) Because of the several different early Christian writers who said Thomas went to India.
3) Because of the Acts of Thomas--a Gnostic book which matches the other accounts.

And which Christian can you reference that ever told the truth?

Jesus Christ.... because it cannot be proved he didn't.

[Zzyzx]

1) Because the Christians in the area self-identify as the St. Thomas Christians, and maintain a detailed account of what the apostle did there.
2) Because of the several different early Christian writers who said Thomas went to India.
3) Because of the Acts of Thomas--a Gnostic book which matches the other accounts.

And which Christian can you reference that ever told the truth?

Jesus Christ.... because it cannot be proved he didn't.

Do you maintain that ANY statements that cannot be proved false MUST be true or that anyone who has not been proved to be a liar MUST be believed? Or does that just apply to your favorite "gods" or religious characters?

Many statements attributed to some of the other thousands of "gods" have not been proved false. By your criteria are they "true because they have not been proved false"?

[daedalus 2.0]

1) Because the Christians in the area self-identify as the St. Thomas Christians, and maintain a detailed account of what the apostle did there.
2) Because of the several different early Christian writers who said Thomas went to India.
3) Because of the Acts of Thomas--a Gnostic book which matches the other accounts.

And which Christian can you reference that ever told the truth?

Jesus Christ.... because it cannot be proved he didn't.

So his promise "verily I say unto thee" to his apostles that they would see the world end during their lifetime. It has been proved that he was wrong - that it wasn't true.

Also, is these true?:

No prophet is welcome on his home ground; doctors don't cure those who know them.
Th 31 Mk 6:4 Mt 13:57 Lk 4:24 - 21 -

No one sews a new patch onto an old garment, and no one puts new wine into old wineskins.
Mk 2:21f Mt 9:16f Lk 5:36f Th 47 - 30 -


No one drinks old wine and then wants to drink new wine.
Th 47 Lk 5:39 - 31 -

Don't be anxious about your life, what you are going to eat, or about your body, what you will wear. Think about the ravens. They don't sow or reap. They don't have storehouses or barns, yet God feeds them. Consider how the field-flowers grow. They don't toil or spin. And yet even Solomon in all his splendour wasn't adorned like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass, which is there today and tomorrow is thrown in the fire, won't he all the more clothe you?
Mt 6:25-30 Lk 12:22-28 Th 36 - 36 -

Whoever does not hate his father and mother cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not hate his brothers and sisters cannot be my disciple.
Th 55, 101 Mt 10:37 Lk 14:26 - 43 -


Do you imagine I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather conflict. After this five in one house will be divided, three against two and two against three. Father will be pitted against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against her mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
Lk 12:51-53 Mt 10:34-36 Th 16 - 44 -

To hang on to your life is to lose it. To let go of your life is to save it.
Lk 17:33, 9:24 Mt 10:39, 16:25 Mk 8:35 Jn 12:25 - 47 -

If you have money, don't lend it at interest. Give it to someone who won't be able to return it.
Th 95 Lk 6:34

Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Mk 11:25 Mt 6:14f Lk 6:37


If someone wrongs you seven times in a day and comes back to you seven times saying, "I am sorry", you must forgive.
Lk 17:4 Mt 18:21f


Treat others the way you would like them to treat you.
Lk 6:31 Mt 7:12 Th 6


Love your enemies.
Lk 6:28 Mt 5:44

Someone who is not against you is on your side.
Mk 9:40 Lk 9:50, 11:23 Mt 12:30

There is nothing covered up that will not be uncovered, nothing hidden that will not be made known.
Lk 12:2, 8:17 Mt 10:26 Mk 4:22 Th 5, 6 - 71 -


Don't use oaths, whether 'by heaven' or 'by earth' or by anything else. When you say yes or no let it be plain 'Yes' or 'No'.
James 5:12 Mt 5:34-37 - 72 -


Follow me, and leave it to the dead to bury their own dead.
Lk 9:60 Mt 8:22

You must be as crafty as snakes, and as innocent as doves.
Mt 10:16 Th 39

No one lights a lamp and then puts it in a cellar or under a bushel. It goes on a stand so that those who come in may see the light.
Lk 11:33, 8:16 Mt 5:15 Mk 4:21 Th 33

No one can break into a strong man's house and plunder his goods unless he has first tied up the strong man. Only then can he ransack the house.
Mk 3:27 Mt 12:29 Lk 11:21f Th 35

Ask and it will be given. Seek and you will find. Knock and it will be opened for you.
Lk 11:9 Mt 7:7 Th 2, 92, 94





A simple yes or no is acceptable:

Was Jesus telling the truth in all of these?

(Don't use oaths, whether 'by heaven' or 'by earth' or by anything else. When you say yes or no let it be plain 'Yes' or 'No'.
James 5:12 Mt 5:34-37)

Because if he is telling the truth in all of these, lets just take one and see if it really true.

For example, many people light lanterns and put them in cellars.

[Antagonist]

I have always wondered at people's stories, and I would like to hear yours. What would make a person so angry, sorrowful, or unconvinced as to not believe in God?

I come to you in the most humble of circumstances, I am still very young. I probably have less knowledge of the Bible than most people on this site do, but I would still like to contribute to these interesting conversations; Won't you please tell me your story?

Ah well, I used to go to a christian primary school and learn about christianity and do lots of activities like praying before school started and listen to bible stories... I never felt much for praying, I thought of it as useless because God would never be able to answer ALL the prayers sent to Him, expecially not the insignificant ones of me. Everytime I prayed I felt like just talking to the wall (which was the case), and none of the prayers were answered.
I was like seven or eight years old when Jurassic Park: the lost world came out and I was introduced to the Dinosaurs which lived 165 million years ago... I bought magazines and read books about them and at the same time I was introduced to the theory of evolution... I figured out that the Genesis story was not true and Adam and Eve never existed. I discussed this with my teacher and he told me that many of the stories in the Bible are symbolic and not supposed to be taken litterally.
Many of the other stories in the bible seemed insignificant to me from then on, they never happened.
By the time I went to secondary school I figured out that Jesus himself would be a symbolic figure aswell and after that the Christian God followed. I think Gods where needed to explain things that where mysteries to mankind. Now that science revealed so many facts only one big problem was left in my mind. The Big Bang Theory was quite unexplaining to me because the big question behind it is: "What caused it!?".
After doing a lot of research I decided that the existence of a God would be the most sane explanation to the Big Bang. I was a Deist. I thought none of the religions where right and there was no punishment in the afterlife (whatever that may be).
Then I discovered that the existence of a God is only one explanation for the Big Bang and that there are many more.. I became an agnostic atheist because I'm not sure whether there is a God or not. I'm atleast sure that IF there would be a God, that this god is not Jesus, Allah or Jewah. None of the religions on earth are right because we are not capable of understanding the origin of the universe yet.

A couple of thousand years ago we didn't know what caused lightning, rain or wind. we do now. today we don't know what caused the Big Bang, We'll figure out some day ...

[ShadowRishi]

I have always wondered at people's stories, and I would like to hear yours. What would make a person so angry, sorrowful, or unconvinced as to not believe in God?

I come to you in the most humble of circumstances, I am still very young. I probably have less knowledge of the Bible than most people on this site do, but I would still like to contribute to these interesting conversations; Won't you please tell me your story?

I left the church and religion because I was sorrowful and angry. I became an atheist because I decided that I would demand my beliefs have reasoning and justification behind them.

The two things were not synonymous and they did not happen at the same time. I left the church because the one that I attended was filled with hypocrites and people who only believed because they wanted to be holier than thou. I quit actually believing because it never seemed like there was a God answering my prayers in any fashion, so I assumed the Christian conception of God was wrong.


I became an atheist because I found no conception of God that made any sense or, in the end, had any justification. Beliefs need to have justifications, otherwise they are no better than a child's dream.

[Nilloc James]

Although I am not atheistic persay I thought this was suitable here.

I chose not to beleive in any specific religion due to the vast number of them all of which make sense, have similar/the same commaandments and can not be proven to the extent i would like.

I simpily decided to skip the religous part and live by my own morals not someone elses.

[saitohaj]

I'm more Agnostic. I can't rule out the possibility of a higher being.

[olemole]

I grew up Christian, and I became very involved in the church. As a high schooler, I taught Sunday school, regularly attended two churches, and went to church camp during more than one summer.